A wide variety of medical techniques and instruments have been developed for diagnosis and/or treatment within a patient's body, such as within a patient's Gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Endoscopic Mucosal Resection (EMR), Endoscopic Sub-mucosal Resection (ESR), Polypectomy, Mucosectomy, etc., are minimally invasive treatment methods for both malignant and non-malignant lesions. Endoscopic medical procedures, such as, for example, EMR, may be used to excise sessile adenomas or other unwanted tissue (i.e., tumors attached to a bodily surface) from the surface of an anatomical lumen. Such procedures often require the resection of one tissue plane while leaving an underlying tissue plane intact. Commonly, snares are used during such medical procedures, for resecting tissue from a target site. However, many conventional snares operate in only one degree of freedom, and manipulation of the snare is dependent on the tip deflection of an endoscope or other device used for insertion into the patient. Further, the pre-formed shape of the wire typically determines the shape of the snare within the patient. Thus, the ability to form a variety of different shapes, and the control and functionality of conventional snares, may be limited.
Further, conventional snares typically move in a distal and proximal direction, with limited ability to deflect to a side. After conventional snares are positioned in a “loop” over the target tissue, snares are then drawn in the proximal direction to tighten the loop. Drawing the snare in the proximal direction, however, can cause the snare to slip off the target tissue. Further, when using this conventional method, the ability to sever the target tissue from the patient's body may be limited to the sharpness of the interior of the snare and the pressure applied.